A Dangerous Change
by musiclover3229
Summary: What would happen if Katniss really were pregnant during Catching Fire. Set After the Quarter Quell announcement.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first fanfic, please review! I want to know if I should continue this story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Hunger Games, although I wish I did.**

I've been feeling weird lately. I don't know what it is. I've been felling nauseous, moody and, the most occurring symptom: being tired. Which I can not afford to be, not now anyway, now that Peeta and I are going back into the Games.

Peeta... I still don't know my feelings for him. Whether its love like I love Prim or that I am _in_ love with him. But we have been acting more like a couple alone more than we ever have before. I think my heart is trying to tell my head something that it just does not want to hear. Not that I want to admit it but I do have some feelings for Peeta, I mean who wouldn't, but the thing is I just don't know if I'm _in love_ with him.

Just as I'm thinking I start to feel nauseous again. I run over to the toilet and vomit loudly. Then I hear the door open and close. I get up, rinse my mouth out and go see who it is.

**A/N: If you have not noticed this is after the Quarter Quell announcement and they are at the training center. I know this is a slow chapter but I had to start somewhere. Hope you guys enjoyed it, I will be posting more! :) **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This chapter is much longer than the first one. Hope you enjoy!**

Its Haymitch. Oh God what does he want? I walk out of the bathroom to find Haymitch sitting on my bed.

" Are you done sweetheart? Because I can come back at a better time." He says.

" What do you want, Haymitch?"

" I came here to give you this." He says as he holds out a small box. Its a pregnancy test.

" What the hell is this!?" I yell

" Just take the test." He says as he leaves the room.

I sit on my bed in shock. There was no way I could be Pregnant, is there? Well I do remember that one night...

_We just got back from Snow's mansion, the night that Peeta proposed to me during the interview with Ceaser Flickerman. We both had to much to drink that night. We walk into my room to sleep as we did every night. But I couldn't help but feel this longing. That hunger that I felt in the cave during the Games._

_We were lying in bed when I kissed him passionately, giving into the longing. We kept kissing as I start to pull his shirt off, wanting more. He stops suddenly, looking at me with those deep, mesmerizing blue eyes that make me melt every time I look at them._

" _Wait, Katniss-" he starts but I don't let him finish. I kiss him again signaling to him that this is what I want. Plus I don't want him to speak because I had a feeling that if he did he would change my mind._

I haven't thought about that night until now. I can't believe I was that stupid! I was stupid into thinking that nothing could go wrong!

I stand up now and run to the bathroom to take the test. As I sit on the bathroom floor waiting for the 5 minutes it takes to complete the test. I wonder what I'm going to do. What if I am pregnant? Who will I tell first? Peeta? It would be his baby after all but I don't think I can deal with him yet, I wouldn't know how to tell him. Haymitch? He would know what to do right?

I get up, hoping that the five minutes are up. I pick up the stick hoping that my worst fears are not true.

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review, I want to know if I should continue this story or what I should do to improve. Bye :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Ok so I have decided that I'm going to post 2 new chapters every Thursday. I want to thank you for all your follows and reviews. Now here is chapter 3**

**Disclaimer : I do not own Hunger Games.**

I'm pregnant! I run out of the bathroom and without even knowing where my feet are taking me I end up in Haymitch's room.

" Hello sweetheart. Let me guess, you took the test?" I nod my head, unable to speak.

" Well, well, well who would have guessed that you, of all people, would have let your guard down.

" What are we going to do?" I say, finding my voice

" Well...we need to tell Peeta."

" I don't know how. How do I tell him something like this?" I say about to break down right in front of him.

Just then Effie walks into the room to whisk me away to be poked and prodded by my prep team. Before I know it I'm being placed into a white gown. What would have been my wedding dress, had it not been for the Quell.

" What is this?" I ask, somewhat pissed off. Damn hormones!

" The president says you're to wear it tonight. Our objections were ignored."

Oh, I feel bad now for snapping at Cinna, he didn't do anything wrong, just doing what he was asked.

"Cinna, I have something to tell you!" I blurt out. I wasn't really planning on telling him but he is a really good friend who I trust.

" Yes, Katniss?"

" I'm pregnant." I say to where he can hardly hear. Cinna just stares at me in shock.

" W-what?" He says, still in shock.

" Yes I'm pregnant."

" Have you told Peeta yet?"

" Um..." I'm hesitating to answer his question.

" Yes, go on

" No." I say shamefully.

" Oh, I see, you don't know how to tell him do you?"

" No I don't know how to tell him and it breaks my heart every time I look at him. Knowing that I'm keeping this big of a secret from him! And he has a right to know, it's his baby after all! But I'm so scared. I'm scared about how he is going to react because of the situation were in. And... I just don't know what to do." I say while breaking down, sobbing.

" Hey, look at me. You know he is going to do _everything_ in his power to protect you. Both of you," mentioning to the little life that is inside me and I, " are going to be just fine."

" But I don't know if I can live without him!" Oh my God. Did I just say that? I know in the first games, if he died I would have had a hard time but as time goes on the pain would have lessened. But I have never thought this to myself.

Can I live without Peeta? No I can't. That's my answer. If Peeta dies I don't know how I would live. How could look at our child every day without hating it because it's like it's father in someway.

" Do you love him?" Cinna asks.

Damn! The same question I ask myself everyday, but after my last comment I think I know the answer now.

" I think I love him."

" It's a yes or no question."

" Yes."

Yes I love Peeta Mellark.

**A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. It was very fun to write. I want to see reviews! I love seeing reviews, even if its things I can improve on. Next chapter will be up soon. Byeee! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry I have to say this but for the most part this chapter is going to be just like the book. This is the interviews so i kinda had to make it like the book or in this case exactly like the book. This was such a boring chapter to write. I'm not going to lie, it was so boring. But you may want to stay tuned for the ending of the chapter, like half of this chapter is from the book but the other half is my imagnation. So now I give you chapter 4!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own hunger games!**

Now that I admitted to myself that I love Peeta, a huge weight has been lifted. Now that that has been taken off my shoulders, it brings a new, persisting question that I soon need to find the answer to. How am I going to tell Peeta I'm pregnant?

" Hey are you okay? You seem distracted." Peeta says.

" Oh yeah I'm fine. Just nervous." I says with a small smile. I not really nervous about going up on stage but how I'm going to tell this wonderful man that I'm pregnant when were about to die in the arena.

Before I know it, all the tributes are up on stage. I zone out for most of the interviews, all of them being about how its not fair, and that this is horrible being here. Now it's my turn. I'm just going to wing it this year.

" So, Katniss, obviously this is a very emotional night for everyone. Is there anything you'd like to say?"

My voice trembles as I speak. " Only that I'm so sorry you won't get to be at my wedding...but I'm glad you at least get to see me in my dress. Isn't it just...the most beautiful thing?" I know this is the right time to do what Cinna told me to do after we had that emotional talk. I stand up, get to the fuont of the stage and begin to twirl slowly, raising my sleeves of my heavy gown above my head.

When I hear the screams of the crowd, I think it's because I must look stunning, then I notice something is rising up around me. Smoke. From fire. Not the flickery stuff I wore last year in the chariot, but something much more real that devours my dress. I began to panic as the smoke thickens. Charred bits of black silk swirl into the air, and pearls clatter to the stage. Somehow I'm afraid to stop because my flesh doesn't seem to be burning and I know Cinna must be behind whatever is happening. So I keep spinning and spinning. For a split second I'm completely engulfed in the strange flames. Then all at once, the fire stops. I slowly come to a stop, wondering if I'm naked and why Cinna has arranged to burn away my wedding dress.

But I'm not naked. I'm in a dress of the exact design of my wedding dress, only it's the color of coal and made of tiny feathers. Wonderingly, I lift my long, flowing sleeves into the air, and that's when I see myself on the television screen. Clothed in black except for the white patches on my sleeves, or should I say my wings.

Because Cinna has turned me into my mockingjay.

I sit back down next to Caesar. " Feathers, you're like a bird."

" A mockingjay, I think, it's the bird on the pin I ear as a token."

Caesar recognizes it after I say that. He knows it's more than just a fashion statement in the Captiol but that it symbolizes so much more. What's seen as a flashy costume change in the Capitol is a completely different thing in the districts.

" Well hats off to you're stylist, I don't think anyone can argue that that's not the most spectacular thing we've ever seen in an interview. Cinna, I think you better take a bow!" Cinna stands and makes a gracious bow.

Now I have another worry on my shoulders. Now what's going to happen to Cinna? He has done something terribly dangerous. An act of rebellion. And he's done it for me. He could be killed!

My three minutes are up so I go and sit back down. Peeta stands up to go to the front of the stage for his interview.

In the beginning they sit and make jokes but then things get serious.

" So Peeta, what was it like when, after all you've been through, you found out about the Quell?"

" I was in shock. I mean one minute I'm seeing Katniss looking so beautiful in all these wedding gowns, and the next..." Peeta trails off.

" You realized there was never going to be a wedding?" Caesar asks gently.

Peeta paused for a long moment, as if deciding something. He looks out at the spellbound audience, then at the floor, then finally up at Caesar.

" Caesar, do you think all our friends here can keep a secret?"

" I feel quite certain of it," says Caesar.

" We're already married," Peeta says quietly. The crowd reacts I astonishment and I have to bury my face in the folds of my skirt so they can't see my confusion. Where on earth is he going with this?

" But...how can that be?" Asks Caesar.

" Oh it's not an official marriage. We didn't go to the Justice Building or anything. But we have this marriage ritual in District 12. I don't know what's it's like in the other districts. But there's this thing we do." Says Peeta and he briefly describes the toasting.

" Were your families there?"

" No we didn't tell anyone. Not even Haymitch. And Katniss's mother would never have approved. But you see, we knew if we were married in the Capitol, there wouldn't be a toasting. And neither of us really wanted to wait any longer. So one day, we just did it. And to us we're more married than any piece of pater of big party could make us."

" So this was before the Quell?"

" Of course before the Quell. I'm sure we'd never have done it after we know. But who could have seen it coming? No one. We went through the Games, we were victors, everyone seemed so thrilled to see us together, and then out of no where – I mean how could we anticipate a thing like that?"

" You couldn't, Peeta. As you say, no one could have. But I have to confess, I'm glad you two had at least a few months of happiness together."

" I'm not gald," Says Peeta. " I wish we had waited until thew whole thing was done officially."

This throws Caesar aback. " Surely even a brief time is better than no time at all?"

" Maybe I'd think that too, Caesar," says Peeta bitterly, " if it weren't for the baby."

What! How did he find out? Did Haymitch tell him? Is he mad at me that I did not tell him first? How could he know? Now as the audience freaks out I'm seething with rage. We are now escorted off the stage and I run to the elevator. I don't even wait for Haymitch or Peeta or anybody. I just need to get away. I get to my room and as I walk through the door to my room a wave of morning sickness comes over me. I run to the toilet. I hear the door open.

"Katniss, are you okay?" Peeta asks. I'm so mad right now that I can't even think straight. I walk out of the bathroom and cut right to the chase.

" Who told you?! Did Haymitch tell you?" I yell.

" Tell me what?"

" Oh you know exactly what I'm talking about!"

" I honestly don't."

I'm stricken with another wave of morning sickness and I run back over to the bathroom. Peeta stands behind me and holds my hair up. I get up, rinse my mouth and turn to face him.

" Will you please tell me what you're talking about?"

Well it's now or never.

" Peeta, I don't know how to tell you this but...I'm pregnant."

**A/N: Sooo wow what happens next. I guess you'll have to wait and see. I want to thank you for your lovely reviews and follows. See u next week byeeeeee! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: hey everybody, i know im not really following what I said in chapter 3 about posting 2 new chapters on Thursdays but I have extra time on my hands so I decided why not I'll post a new chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hunger Games!**

" What?" I think this is the first time that Peeta has ever been speechless. He was just staring at me in shock for about five minutes.

" I'm pregnant."

" How did this happen?"

" Um...Peeta I think you know the answer to that."

" You know that's not what I meant. When did this happen?"

" Remember that night after the interviews and the party on the victory tour." It takes him a moment but then I see the hint of recognition on his face.

" Oh." Is that all he can say? Really? " Katniss, you know I'm going to do everything in my power to keep you safe. I won't let anyone hurt you. You know that right?"

" Yeah I know." I say quietly, but I can't live without him. I love him so much, and I can't believe it took me getting knocked up to realize it.

" Hey, why don't we get cleaned up and I'll meet you on the roof." Peeta suggests.

" Yeah, I'll be up there soon" He walks out of my bedroom. I walk to the bathroom to take a shower and clean all this makeup off of me.

I can't stop worrying about what is going to happen in the arena. What if Peeta dies. I don't know what I would do, would I keep going for our baby's sake or would I just end my life right there and then? I know these are not the best thoughts to be having but I can't seem to get them out of my head. When I walk on the roof, he's already there, waiting for me. He takes my hand and we just sit on the edge in a comfortable silence, enjoying each others company.

" I'm so scared." I say as a lone tear falls down my cheek. I'm never usually so vulnerable, it must be these damn hormones! Or maybe it's because I love Peeta and I should feel comfortable to tell him whatever I'm feeling.

" I know me too." I love how he doesn't feel as though he needs to be tough around me. It makes me feel connected to him in another way. I lean my head up and without even thinking about it, I kiss him. At first it was slow and gentle but then it started growing so quickly. After what seems like hours but was probably minutes we stop, both of us a little out of breath. And the three little words that I have been so afraid to say and feel all my live just slip out.

" I love you" I look into his eyes and see a flash of hope and then sadness.

" I love you too."

**A/N: oooohhhh that was a really fun chapter to write. So much more fun than the last chapter. Thank you to all who have reviewed and favored and followed, you guys are AMAZING! :) I can't wait to see your reactions**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: So these next chapters are going to be like the book, most of the dialogue will be like the book, but I'm trying to add as many twists as I possibly can. I have a few surprises for you guys in this chapter so I hope this will make it better for you guys to read. All I am thinking about right now is that I can't wait to finish this story so I can move on to my mockingjay story(yes there will be a mockingjay story) that is next in the series. With this story I feel as though I can't use much imagination, but with mockingjay, I can uses a ton of it. But enough of me talking! I now give you chapter 6!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hunger Games!**

I wake up to Peeta sleeping peacefully next to me. It's 5:00. Cinna and Portia will be here soon. I hate to wake him but he has to go meet Portia.

" Peeta, you have to wake up." His eyelids flutter open.

" What time is it?"

" It's 5:00, Portia will be here soon. You have to go meet her.

Peeta groans. " Okay, I guess I see you in the arena." He kisses me softly. " I love you" He tells me.

" I love you too." He turns to walk out the door.

Once he's out the door I start to sob. I can't believe I won't be able to have a life with him, a family. There is no way we are going to make it out of here, and if I ever did, I don't know how I would live. I'm afraid that if I did make it out of here I would turn into what my mother was like when my father died, and I can't do that to our child.

I hear a knock at the door, and I already know that knock belongs to Cinna. I collect my bearings and go to open the door. I guess he can see my red face and puffy eyes because he opens his arms for an embrace. I run into them, this will probably be the last time I see Cinna. As Cinna leads me to the roof to get on the hovercraft I can't help but think what will happen to him, and it will be all because of me.

After they put the tracker in my arm I get on the hovercraft. Cinna keeps pressing me to eat but I can't. I manage to sip a glass of water, thinking about the dehydration that almost killed me last year.

After we get off the hovercraft we get to the Launch Room where the tributes finish getting ready. I shower, Cinna braids my hair down my back and helps me dress over simple undergarments. This year's tribute outfit si a fitted blue jumpsuit, made of very sheer material, that zippers up the front. A six-inch-wide padded belt covered in shiny purple plastic. A pair of nylon shoes with rubber soles.

" What do you think?" Holding out the fabric for Cinna to see.

" I don't know. It will offer little in the way of protection from cold or water."

" Sun?"

" Possibly. Oh, I almost forgot this." He takes my gold mockingjay pin form his pocket and fixes it to the jumpsuit.

" My dress was fantastic last night." Fantastic and reckless, but I'm sure Cinna knows that.

We just sit there together until the voice tells me to prepare for the launch. He walks me over to the circular metal plate. " Remember, girl on fire, I'm still betting on you." He kisses my forehead and steps back as the glass cylinder slides around me.

" Thank you," I say, although he probably can't hear me. I hold my head high waiting for the plate to rise, but it doesn't. I look at Cinna for an explanation, but he's just as perplexed as I am. Why are they delaying this?

Suddenly the door slams open and three peacekeepers run into the room. Two pin Cinna's hands behind his back while the other kicks him in his right temple causing him to fall to his knees. I'm screaming my head off while they are beating him. Finally one of the peacekeepers look really annoyed, he takes out his gun and points it towards me.

" Shut up," I can't exactly hear what he says but I can read his lips. " Or I will blow you're head off."

They start to drag Cinna out of the room, leaving only streaks of blood on the floor. When the door closes the metal plate shoots up and I'm outside where, at first all I can see is water. I then notice the pink sky, and the cornucopia. I can't think straight, not with what I just saw. Images of Cinna's beaten body pop into my head. Stop it Katniss! The gongs going to go off any second now, but as soon as it does I jump into the water. I'm one of the first people to make it to the cornucopia. Followed by Finnick. I see a bow and a sheath of arrows and I immediately grab it before anyone else can.

" You can swim too," Finnick says. " Where did you learn that in district twelve?"

" We have a big bathtub,"

" You must," he says. " You like the arena?"

" Not particularly. But you should. They must have built it especially for you." It seems like it anyway, what with all the water and everything.

For a moment were frozen, sizing each other up, our weapons, our skill. Then Finnick suddenly grins. " Lucky thing we're allies. Right?"

Sensing a trap, I'm about to let my arrow fly, hoping it finds his heart before the trident impales me, when he shifts his hand and something on the wrist catches the sunlight. A solid-gold bangle patterned with flames. The same one on Haymitch's wrist, Haymitch must have given it to Finnick. As a signal to me. An order, really. To trust Finnick.

I can hear other footsteps approaching, I must decide now. " Right!" I snap.

" Duck!" When I do, I hear the trident fly over my head and I hear the sound of it impacting someone. The man from District 5. " Don't trust One or Two," Finnick says.

There is no time to question this. We split up to look on both sides of the cornucopia. " Anything good?" I hear him shout.

" Weapons! Nothing but weapons." I shout back at him.

" Same here, grab what you want and lets go!" I grab a few weapons and go to meet Finnick.

" Do something about that, would you?" Mentioning towards Brutus, I shoot at him but his belt blocks the arrow. As I reload he runs back into the water.

" Let's clear out." I say. I'm about to jump into the water to get Peeta, who is still on his plate just like most of the other tributes are.

" I'll get him."

" I can." I insist.

But Finnick has dropped all his weapons to the ground. "Better not exert yourself. Not in your condition," He says and reaches down and pats my abdomen. That's right, I haven't even thought about the baby ever since this morning. I feel upset now, but I know I have other things to do and that I can't think about the baby all the time. I see Finnick almost over to dry land with Peeta. I help Peeta get on dry land.

" Hello, again." he says, and gives me a kiss. " We've got allies."

" Yes. Just as Haymitch intended."

" Remind me, did we make deals with anyone else?"

" Only Mags, I think." I say. I nod toward the old woman paddling her way toward us.

" Well I can't leave Mags behind," says Finnick. " She's one of the few people who actually like me."

" I've got no problem with Mags, especially now that I see the arena. Her fishhooks are probably our best chance of getting a meal." I say as I hand Peeta a bow, a sheath of arrows, and a knife, keeping the rest for myself. We run away from the cornucopia.

We need to find water, soon. We are all becoming sweaty because of the humidity of this_jungle_. Peeta takes the lead, swinging his knife around to cut the foliage in front of us. And that's when I see it , the force field. I'm about to shout at Peeta to stop but his knife comes into contact with the force field with my warning on my lips. Peeta flings backwards and onto the ground. I run over to him and as soon as I get on the ground that's when I hear it. The cannon that signals that Peeta's dead.

**A/N: ohhh what's going to happen now. I told you there would be twists. I guess you will have to find out. This chapter took me forever to write, as you see a lot of it is part of the book so I had to cut stuff out that wasn't as necessary as other stuff. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I want to thank you for all the reviews, it really inspires me to keep going, and I hope to see more of them. **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hey so sorry about not uploading any chapters last week. I was super busy and still wondering how I'm going to finish this story. So I think I'm going to finish sometime around next week, and I might get in a first chapter of the next story (TBA) in. I don't really know what the names going to be, any suggestions would be super helpful with the name. So anyway here is chapter 7!**

"Peeta!" I scream. I shake him violently, even slapping his face a few times. It's not until I'm sobbing over his body seconds later when Finnick pulls me away from him. I try to run back but Finnick pushes me back. He plugs Peeta's nose and starts...kissing him? Wait, no not kissing him, but putting air into his lungs. I now realize what he is doing. I've seen my mother do this but rarely. Finnick opens Peeta's jumpsuit and starts pushing down on his chest. He does this for a few minutes, while I'm leaning down on a tree sobbing, and trembling. Just when Finnick decides that it's to late, Peeta gives a small cough. I run over to him.

"Peeta?" I say, my tears landing on his chest. He wraps his arms around me, comforting me. He just died and yet he's comforting me?

"I'm alright Katniss." He says, trying to reassure me.

" No your not, you just died!" I yell at him. Is it right to yell at someone who just came back from the dead? I don't know but my anger is getting the best of me, like it always does. I start making those choking sounds when I start to sob, no, no more crying.

"Katniss?" Oh great, now he's worried.

"Don't worry, it's just her hormones." Finnick tells Peeta. No it's not, its the fact the the love of my life died right in front of my eyes. We can't really stay here any longer so I suggest we move on. Finnick carries Mags and Peeta leans on me as I help him walk. We finally stop after we find that the arena is one big circle and there is no water to be seen.

"I'm going to look for some water." I say. Peeta looks up.

" I'll go with you."

" I'm going to do some hunting if I can, and you're too loud." We both laugh at this statement. "I won't go too far." I tell him while giving him a light kiss.

I head out deeper into the jungle. I notice how strange the animals are here. Strange birds with brilliant plumage, tree lizards with flickering blue tongues, and something that looks like a cross between a rat and a possum clinging on the branches close to the trunk. I shoot at it.

It's ugly, all right. A big rodent with a fuzz of mottled gray fur and two wicked-looking gnawing teeth protruding over its lower lip. What's also strange is that its muzzle is wet. So I get up and search for the water but find nothing. Absolutely nothing. I head back because I know Peeta will be worried about me.

When I arrive, they have transformed the place. Mags and Finnick have created a hut of sorts out of grass mats, open on one side but with three walls. When they hear me, they look at me with hope, but I give my head a slight shake. "No. No water. It's out there though. He knew where it was," I say, holding up the skinned rodent up for all to see. "He'd been drinking recently when I shot him out of a tree, but I couldn't find the source. I swear, I covered every inch of ground in a thirty-yard radius."

"Can we eat him?" Peeta asks.

"I don't know for sure. But his meat doesn't look that different from a squirrel'. He ought to be cooked..." I hesitate as I think of trying to start a fire out here from complete scratch. Even if I succeed, there's the smoke to think about. We're all so close together in this arena, there's no chance of hiding it.

Peeta has an idea though. He takes a cube of rodent meat, skewers it on the tip of a pointed stick, and lets it fall into the force field. The meat was cooked all the way through. It was surprisingly good.

It's nightfall and we know what's coming. We all stand at the mouth of the hut and Peeta slips his hand into mine. The sky brightens when the seal of the Capitol appears as if floating in space. As I listen to the strains of the anthem I think, _It will be harder for Finnick and Mags._

The man from District 5, that means all the tributes from 1 and 4 are alive – the Careers, Beetee and Wiress, and of course, Mags and Finnick. The man from district 5 is followed by the male morphling from 6, Cecelia and Woof from 8, both from 9, the woman from 10, and Seeder from 11. The Capitol seal is back with a final bit of music and then the sky goes dark except for the moon.

No one speaks. I can't pretend I knew any of them well. But I'm thinking of those three kids hanging on to Cecelia when they took her away. Seeder's kindness to me at our meeting. Even the thought of the glazed-eyed morphling painting my cheeks with yellow flowers gives me a pang. All dead. All gone.

I don't know how long we might have sat here if it weren't for the arrival of the sliver parachute, which glides down through the foliage to land before us. No one reaches for it.

"Whose is it?" I say finally.

"No telling, why don't we let Peeta claim it, since he died today?" Says Finnick.

Peeta unties the cord and flattens out the circle of silk. On the parachute sits a small metal object that I can't place. "What is it?" I ask. No one knows. We pass it from hand to hand, taking turns examining it. It's a hollow metal tube, tapered slightly at one end. On the other end a small lip curves downward. It's vaguely familiar. A part that could have fallen off a bicycle, a curtain rod, anything, really.

I take it and roll it back and forth on my palm. Since we're allies, Haymitch will be working with the District 4 mentors. He had a hand in choosing this gift. That means it's valuable. Lifesaving, even. I think back to last year, when I wanted water so badly, but he wouldn't send it because he knew I could find it if I tried. Haymitch's gifts, or lack thereof, carry weighty messages. I can almost hear him growling at me, _Use your brain if you have one. What is it?_

I wipe the sweat from my eyes and hold the gift out in the moonlight. I move it this way and that, viewing it from different angles, covering portions and then revealing. "I give up!"

I stretch out, pressing my hot cheek o the grass mat, staring at the thing in aggravation. Peeta rubs a tense spot between my shoulders and I let myself relax a little. I'm still thinking about what the piece of metal could be, all of a sudden it has a name.

"A spile!" I exclaim, sitting bolt upright.

"What?" asks Finnick.

I wrestle the thing from the ground and brush it clean. Cup my hand around the tapered end, concealing it, and look at the lip. Yes, I've seen one of these before. On a cold, windy day long ago, when I was out in the woods with my father. Inserted snugly into a hole drilled in the side of a maple. A pathway for the sap to follow as it flowed into our bucket. Maple syrup could make even our dull bread a treat. After my father died, I didn't know what happened to the handful of spiles he had. Hidden out in the woods somewhere, probably. Never to be found.

"It's a spile. Sort of like a faucet. You put it in a tree and sap comes out. Well the right sort of tree."

"Sap?" Asks Finnick.

"To make syrup. But there must be something else inside these trees." Says Peeta.

We're all on our feet at once. Our thirst. The lack of springs. The tree rat's sharp front teeth and wet muzzle. There can only be one thing worth having inside these trees. Finnick goes to hammer the spile into the green bark of a massive tree with a rock, but I stop him. We finally find something to make a hole in the tree. We use Mags's awl to make a hole in the tree. I stick it in the tree. At first nothing happens. A small drop of water lands on the ground.

By wiggling and adjusting the spile, we get a thin stream running out. We take turns holding our mouths under the tap. Mags brings over a basket and the grass is so tightly woven it holds water.

Without our thirst to distract us, we're all aware of how exhausted we are and make preparations for the night. Last year, I always tried to have my gear ready in case I had to a speedy retreat in the night. This year, there's no backpack to prepare. Just my weapons, which won't leave my grasp, anyway.

Finnick offers to take the first watch and I let him, knowing it has to be one of the two of us until Peeta's rested up. I lie down beside Peeta on the floor of the hut, telling Finnick to wake me when he's tired. Instead I find myself jarred from sleep a few hours later by what seems to be the tolling of a bell. _Bong! Bong! _Peeta and Mags sleep through it, but Finnick has the same look of attentiveness I feel. The tolling stops.

"I counted twelve." He says.

I nod. Twelve? What does that signify? One ring for each district? Maybe. But why? "Do you think it means anything?"

"No idea."

We wait for further instructions, maybe a message from Claudius Templesmith. An invitation to a feast. The only thing of a note appears in the distance. A dazzling bolt of electricity strikes a towering tree and then a lightning storm begins. I guess it's an indication of rain, of a water source for those who don't have mentors as smart as Haymitch.

"Go to sleep Finnick. It's my turn to watch anyway." I say.

Finnick hesitates, but no one can stay awake forever. He settles down at the mouth of the hut, one hand gripped around a trident, and drifts into a restless sleep.

I sit with my bow loaded, watching the jungle, which is ghostly pale and green in the moonlight. After an hour or so, the lighting stops. I can hear the rain coming in though, pattering on the leaves a few hundred yards away. I keep waiting for it to reach us but it never does.

The sound of a cannon startles me, although it makes little impression on my sleeping companions. There's no point in awakening them for this. So I start whispering to the baby.

"I'm going to get you out of here, if it's the last thing I do." I tell it. I know that means that Peeta has to die. The thought of that makes me want to die myself. A life without Peeta, to me, isn't a life at all. But I make a promise to myself. If Peeta does not make it out of here and I do, I will not become like my mother was. I will not abandon our child.

The elusive rain shuts off suddenly, like the storm did last year in the arena.

Moments after it stops, I see a fog sliding softly in from the direction of the recent downpour. _Just a reaction. Cool rain on the steaming ground,_ I think. I continues to approach at a steady pace. Tendrils reach forward and then curl like fingers, as if they are pulling the rest behind them. As I watch, I feel the hairs on my neck begin to rise. Something's wrong with this fog. The progression of the front line is too uniform to be natural. And if it's not natural...

A sickeningly sweet odor begins to invade my nostrils and I reach for the others, shouting for them to wake up. In the few seconds it takes to rouse them, I begin to blister.

**A/N: Sorry this is so much like the book. I didn't think about that until I already got started on this story. So if your getting bored, I understand, but I encourage you to keep reading. As there are going to be a lot more twists, and different things that are going to happen later on in the series. So please bear with me. No cliffhanger. You already know what happens. Well...your supposed to anyway. So I want to thank you for your reviews. There amazing! You all are amazing. And I want you to know, in case you did not read the top A/n, that this story will be finished soon. But don't get upset. There is a Mockingjay story that is to be later named, I still don't know the name yet, so suggestions would be great! So I hope to hear what you think. Bye!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: OMG I'm soooo super sorry! I've been soo busy, i just haven't had the time to write this, again I'm so sorry. This is second to the last chapter so were almost done! Yay! I have decided to name the next story A Strangled Cry. So enough of my rambling on, here is chapter 8.**

The past few days have been hectic. So many deaths, so many people mourning for their friends who have died. It's not just Finnick, Peeta, and I anymore. We've now teemed up with Johanna, and Beetee. We originally had Wiress to, but a fight with the careers ended that. Beetee talks about things that are way to advanced for anyone to understand, and Johanna...well she's just a pain in my ass. There have been many times where I wanted to really hurt her, but of course I didn't do that.

The only thing that makes , happy is the memory of that night on the beach with Peeta. He kept telling me that I had to go home, I had my family, and my child to think about, but I was just not having it. To finally get him to stop going on about him dying I kissed him like I've never kissed him before. It was so passionate that it sends shivers down my spine just thinking about it.

At the moment, I really should be paying attention, Beetee is going on about some plan to electrocute the beach, with his coil and the lightning tree, but it's just so hard to understand what he is saying, it's all in scientific terms! We get up to the lightning tree and he tells me and Johanna to take the coil and unwind it to the beach. I really didn't want to leave Peeta but Beetee gave me no choice.

As Johanna and I unwind the coil she hits me upside the head, pins me down and starts cutting my arm. I never trusted her in the beginning, and now I know it was right not to trust her. The pain is excruciating, she gets off me and tells me to stay down. What the hell for? Is she going to come back? Oh I hear it now, Brutus and Enobaria. "She's as good as dead." He tells Enobaria. After they leave I know I have to find Peeta. I can't let him die, I just can't. I keep hearing cannon after cannon. I hear him call my name, I'm calling his, but I can't find him. I can't walk anymore and I just collapse to the ground. I hear a moan and look to find Beetee lying next to me with any injury. He has the coil attached to Peeta's knife. Why? What was he trying to do, throw it at the force field. I realize it's almost midnight, I see Brutus and Enobaria at the tree, I grab the bow and aim at her neck, I'll kill her. But she's not the enemy, no one here is the enemy. Haymitch's words come back to me. _"Katniss, when you're in the arena...you just remember who the enemy is." _None of these tributes are the enemy. The capitol is. I wrap the coil around the arrow and shoot is as soon as the lightning goes off.

Right before the explosions begin, I find a star.

**A/N: I know, not my longest chapter, but I really didn't want to go over everything that you guys already know. Last chapter is next. I'll try to get it up tonight, but I'm not sure if I can, it all depends. I love you're reviews, please keep doing that. Whenever I have a bad day, I always read your reviews and it makes me happy. Thank you guys. I love you all!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey guys, I'm so very sorry about not uploading sooner. My computer crashed 2 weeks ago and now we just got it fixed so again, I'm very sorry. Now here is the final chapter, enjoy!**

I wake up in a white room with bright florescent lights. I try to sit up but find that I'm restrained to the bed. As I struggle to break free, two peacekeepers walk into the room. Does there always have to be someone watching me? As they unhook me, I try to gather up all the information I can. All I know is that I'm in the Capitol. I don't where Peeta is or if he is alive for that matter. What are they going to do to me? Torture me for information I don't have?

I can't get Peeta out of my head. Is he dead? Just the thought of that is enough to make me break down but I have to contain my self so I push the thought to the back of my mind.

I'm brought into Snow's office and there he sits. With his snake eyes and his unnatural smell of roses mixed with blood. It makes me want to vomit, but instead, I sit down and look at him coldly.

"Miss. Everdeen, do you remember anything that happened in the arena?" He asks me with a sickly amused look on his face. Yes, I remember everything, but I'm not going to tell him that, so I stay silent. He looks as though he's going to ask me again but instead...

"Peeta's dead." I sit there with my mouth gaping open. No! He can't be dead, not after I vowed to protect him. I can feel the tears sting at my eyes, I just don't care anymore, so I let them fall.

"I don't believe you." As I think about it, it's hard to believe that he is actually dead, Snow is probably just saying that.

"I knew you'd be difficult." As he says this he motions for me to look at the screen that is over in the corner.

The first thing I see is myself. It looks like it is the part where I'm on my desperate search for Peeta. Then I see Peeta, doing the same thing I'm doing, but, I'm guessing, this is the part where I blow the force field up. I see roots springing up from the ground and trees falling. I see Peeta trip, and then Peeta is crushed with a tree. I let out a little strangled cry. Snow just smiles at me.

"And now you have proof." I'm so livid that I stand up, knocking the chair over in the process, and bang my hands on the desk.

"You killed him!" I yell at him. Right now he can kill me for all I care. I want to die.

"You cold unfeeling bastard! You killed him!" I can feel to sets of hands grab hold of my arms, but I'm not quite finished yet. I kick on of the peacekeepers shins and punch the other in the face. "I'm going to fucking kill you if it's the last thing I ever do!" I at least get to punch him and spit in his eye before a group of peacekeepers carry me out.

I'm carried down a hall and down a couple flights of stairs, and all the while I'm crying and screaming hysterically. Next thing I know, thrown in a cold cell where I sit and sob.

The only thing I can think about is how I failed him. I promised myself that I would keep him safe. But I didn't. It's my fault he's dead, not anyone else. I'm so sorry Peeta. But I will not kill myself because I have Peeta's child to think about. This is the only thing I have left of Peeta, so I will do everything in my power to protect it. I make two promises to myself. One: I'm going to protect my baby no matter what. Two: I'm going to, no matter what, kill snow.

**A/N: Now I'm finished! Yay! So guys be on the look out for the squeal to this story. A Strangled Cry! Thank you guys, soo much. I love you all for all the support you've given me. I love you all.**


	10. A Strangled Cry is up now!

Hey everybody! I just wanted to let you know that _A Strangled Cry_ is up! Please go check it out, and send me some feedback. I really want to know what you think of it! Thanks guys!


End file.
